Rethinking the Machines in Which We Live: A Multidisciplinary Course in Architectural Robotics

Attempting to bridge the educational gap between robotics and other disciplines is always challenging, but it is likely to provide interesting results. This point is exemplified in a graduate-level class, architectural robotics, enrolling students from electrical, computer, and mechanical engineering as well as human factors psychology and architecture [1]. Architectural robotics is formally defined in [2] as "intelligent and adaptable built environments (featuring embedded robotic components) that sense, plan, and act." In [2], which sets out a vision for architectural robotics, Gross and Green assert that "perhaps the greatest challenge for architectural robotics is defining the community" and ask, "who is cultivating this line of research?" We believe robotics professionals should play a major role in defining and leading this emerging field. The class discussed in this article is aimed at defining the scope of the field and its community from a robotics perspective.